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DA: No charges will be filed in fatal police shooting

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No criminal charges will be filed against three Oak Ridge Police Department officers after a fatal shooting on Briar Road in August, the county’s top prosecutor said Monday.

Seventh Judicial District Attorney General Dave Clark released his report about the police shooting on Monday morning.

The report said that the man who died in the shooting, Fred J. Arcera, 25, was a U.S. Army veteran who had mental health problems and was reported to be suicidal—telling officers to kill him—and he had large butcher knives and had threatened officers, moving toward them with the knives that Saturday night.

The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation investigated the shooting, which is common after law enforcement officers fatally shoot someone.

[Read more…]

TBI, DA: Police report they shot, killed man after he charged at them with knives

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Note: This story was last updated at 7:30 p.m.

Three Oak Ridge police officers reportedly shot at a man and he was struck and killed Saturday night after he allegedly charged at the officers with two knives, according to state officials.

The shooting was reported on Briar Road just before 9:30 p.m. Saturday, according to the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation.

The man who allegedly had two knives and was shot and killed was Fred John Henry Arcera, 41.

The Oak Ridge Police Department had responded to a report of individual needing help.

“At some point during their interaction, Arcera reportedly came at the officers with the weapons, resulting in three officers firing shots, striking him,” the TBI said. “He was pronounced dead at the scene.  No officers were injured during the incident.”

[Read more…]

Oak Ridge firefighter injured in fire on Artesia Dr.

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An Oak Ridge firefighter was injured fighting a house fire on Artesia Drive early Friday, Feb. 14, 2020. (Photo by Oak Ridge Fire Department)

An Oak Ridge firefighter was injured in a fire in a vacant house on Artesia Drive early Friday, February 14.

The fire was reported at about 3:20 a.m. February 14.

When the Oak Ridge Fire Department arrived, firefighters found heavy smoke and fire coming from the windows and eaves of the home, a press release said.

“The fire crew entered through the front door and quickly extinguished the fire in the kitchen area,” the press release said.

[Read more…]

More meth than marijuana submitted to TBI labs in 2019

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More methamphetamine than marijuana was submitted to Tennessee Bureau Investigation crime laboratories in 2019, a sign of a troubling drug trend, the TBI said Monday.

It’s the first time that’s happened since TBI crime laboratories began keeping detailed statistics, a press release said.

“Drug addiction continues to be a major issue in Tennessee, and I believe this sharp increase in methamphetamine has a connection to our state’s ongoing opioid epidemic,” said TBI Director David Rausch. “Drug abusers often flow from depressants to stimulants and back again. As more people struggle with opioid addiction many of them will—with time—seek out stimulants like methamphetamine. Unfortunately, those who run drug operations, often based outside the United States, know there’s an increased demand here. Alongside our local, state, and federal partners, we’ll keep doing what we can to dismantle these operations, but we’d also urge anyone struggling with drug problems to get help before addiction costs you your life.”

[Read more…]

For members: Man charged with conspiracy to distribute cocaine, heroin, meth

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Joshua Andrew Koch

 

A 42-year-old Anderson County man is facing federal charges of conspiring to distribute cocaine, heroin, and methamphetamine after a search of a home in Claxton in July allegedly found about 230 grams of a white, crystal-like substance thought to be methamphetamine and roughly 69.5 grams of a brown powder substance suspected to be heroin, according to state and federal court records.

The defendant has also been charged with federal financial and firearms crimes, and he has seven co-defendants in the case, although the charges vary by defendant.

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Warrant: Argument between neighbors ends with fatal shooting, homicide charge

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George Michael Patterson
George Michael Patterson

Note: This story was updated at 10:45 a.m. Nov. 26.

An argument between neighbors ended with a fatal shooting in Rocky Top on Saturday morning, and one man has been charged with criminal homicide, according to Anderson County court records.

The shooting was reported just before 8 a.m. Saturday on Willow Lane in Rocky Top (the former Lake City).

An arrest warrant filed after the shooting said the man charged with criminal homicide, George Michael Patterson, 64, had been arguing with his neighbor, David Ray Roach Jr., 43, in front of Patterson’s home. Roach was initially in his vehicle during the argument, parked in the roadway, the warrant said.

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Death of Thomas Thrasher still being investigated in homicide case

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Thomas Stephen "T.S." Thrasher
Thomas Stephen “T.S.” Thrasher

The investigation of the death of an Oak Ridge man in an apartment in December 2014 remains active and ongoing, a state law enforcement official said Wednesday.

The death of Thomas Steven Thrasher Jr. is being investigated as a homicide. Anyone with information is asked to contact the Tennesssee Bureau of Investigation at (800) TBI-FIND.

In response to questions, TBI spokesperson Leslie Earhart said she could not discuss any potential evidence in the case, including whether a suspect has been identified.

[Read more…]

TBI: Man reportedly pointed gun at officers before they fatally shot him

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Seventh Judicial District Attorney General Dave Clark, center, talks to the media after a fatal shooting involving officers on West Broad Street near the city limits of north Clinton on Tuesday, Aug. 13, 2019. Also pictured are Anderson County Sheriff Russell Barker, left, and Clinton Police Chief Vaughn Becker, right. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

Note: This story was last updated at 12 p.m. Aug. 15.

CLINTON—A man who was reported to be suicidal had reportedly pointed a gun at officers before they fired their guns, fatally striking him, during a standoff with police near the city limits of north Clinton on Tuesday evening, authorities said.

On Wednesday, the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation identified the man as Jerry Orlando Weaver, 51, of Clinton.

A 911 caller had reported a suicidal man with a firearm in the 600 block of West Broad Street at about 5:40 p.m. Tuesday, authorities said. The man was reported to be near the roadway with a gun, according to the TBI, which is investigating the officer-involved shooting.

The Clinton Police Department, Anderson County Sheriff’s Office, and Seventh Judicial District Crime Task Force responded. There were reported to be more than a dozen officers at the site. There was a standoff of about 15 to 20 minutes, said Dave Clark, district attorney general in the Seventh Judicial District in Anderson County.

When they arrived, officers made contact with the man, who was threatening to harm himself, the TBI said.

[Read more…]

TBI investigating officer-involved shooting in Clinton

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The Tennessee Bureau of Investigation is investigating an officer-involved shooting in Clinton.

The shooting was reported in the 600 block of West Broad Street in Clinton, and agents are there, the TBI said.

More information will be added as it becomes available.

For members: Man sentenced to 10 years in shooting death of girlfriend’s mother

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William James McMillan

An Andersonville man was sentenced to 10 years in prison on Monday when he pleaded guilty to voluntary manslaughter in the shooting death of his girlfriend’s mother four years ago.

The rest of this story, which you will find only on Oak Ridge Today, is available if you are a member: a subscriber, advertiser, or recent contributor to Oak Ridge Today.  Already a member? Great! Thank you! Sign in here. Not a member? No problem! Subscribe here: Basic

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If you prefer to send a check, you may do so by mailing one to: Oak Ridge Today P.O. Box 6064 Oak Ridge, TN 37831 Note: Most news stories on Oak Ridge Today are free, brought to you by Oak Ridge Today with help from our advertisers, sponsors, and subscribers. Some are considered premium content. This story is premium content. Premium content can include in-depth, investigative, and exclusive stories.

DA: Granddaughter in murder case was malnourished, smothered

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Valerie Stenson

The young granddaughter who died in Oak Ridge in 2011 was malnourished and had been smothered, District Attorney General Dave Clark said Friday, after the child’s grandmother pleaded guilty to second-degree murder last Tuesday.

Emergency workers and law enforcement officers responded to a 911 call at Teller Village Apartments around 1:30 p.m. Monday, April 11, 2011. The grandmother, Valerie Stenson, now 54, was trying to revive her granddaughter, Manhattan Inman, using cardiopulmonary resuscitation, or CPR, Clark said in a press release Friday.

“An autopsy reveled that the child was malnourished, and the cause of death was smothering,” said Clark, who is DA in the Seventh Judicial District (Anderson County).

Manhattan was two years and nine months old when she died, Clark said.

[Read more…]

Rocky Top woman charged with three counts of first-degree murder

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The criminal homicide charge filed against Christy Viola Comer, 37, left, was sent to the Anderson County Grand Jury after a preliminary hearing in Anderson County General Sessions Court in Clinton on Tuesday, Jan. 22, 2019. At right is defense attorney Leslie Hunt. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

Christy Viola Comer, 38, of Rocky Top, has been charged with three counts of first-degree murder in the death of J.C. Copeland, an 83-year-old man, during an alleged robbery in August. Comer, left, is pictured above during a preliminary hearing in Anderson County General Sessions Court in Clinton on Tuesday, Jan. 22, 2019. At right is defense attorney Leslie Hunt. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

A Rocky Top woman has been charged with three counts of first-degree murder in the death of an 83-year-old man during an alleged robbery in August.

Christy Viola Comer, 38, faces one count of first-degree murder for the premeditated and intentional killing of J.C. Copeland, according to an indictment filed by the Anderson County Grand Jury in Clinton on March 5.

Comer faces two more charges of first-degree murder for allegedly killing Copeland while committing two other crimes, aggravated robbery and aggravated burglary, according to the indictment.

The five-count indictment also charged Comer with those two other crimes, aggravated robbery and aggravated burglary. Comer took Copeland’s property violently through the use of a deadly weapon, and she entered Copeland’s home without permission, intending to commit a felony, according to the indictment.

Comer has an arraignment scheduled for the five felony charges on March 29 in Anderson County Criminal Court in Clinton. [Read more…]

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